Tim Wilson (Goldstein, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to say that I cannot support this amendment, very much in the spirit of the remarks that have already been made by the Leader of the House. I was elected as a Liberal and there is no day, frankly, that I am prouder to be a Liberal and a member of the Turnbull coalition government than this day. As a Liberal, I was elected to defend the freedom of this parliament and to make decisions in the national interest. I have always opposed and always will oppose any effort to entrench international treaties into domestic law which undermine our national sovereignty. My opposition to this amendment should not be misinterpreted as being opposed to its spirit or its objective—or many of the remarks that other people have made—as one of the strongest and proudest defenders of religious liberty in this parliament. But I cannot support the introduction of an amendment that refers directly to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in the same language, because it would allow our courts to undermine our freedom by, ultimately, using foreign jurisdictional law as the basis for their interpretations.

We are a liberal democracy, and the choice that has always confronted this nation is: are we a social democracy or a liberal one? Social democracies legislate what people can do. Liberal democracies remove the barriers for people to exercise their freedom. That is what we are doing in this House today. We are removing the barrier and the boundaries which stop people from enabling themselves to get married.

In closing, this will be the last time I make a contribution to this debate as well. I extend, just as the member for North Sydney has, my thanks to Trevor Evans, the member for Brisbane, Warren Entsch, the member for Leichhardt, and Trent Zimmerman, the member for North Sydney, for their leadership in this debate, as well as Senator Dean Smith in the other place. I also want to put on the formal record my thanks to the Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull. This will be a marker in your legacy, Prime Minister, and you deserve every bit of credit for its success.

The final thing I want to say in this debate is to inform the House that I will be dedicating my vote, in the final vote, to the Goldstein family the Greenes of Hampton. The Greene family have been at the front of this debate at every step of the way, and I acknowledge their incredible work. Proud parents Russell and Roxy, with their son and daughter, Steven and Angie, got together to support their son Brent. They have put themselves at the fore of this debate, because they're united by their love, their family and their commitment. So I dedicate my final vote to them, and I want to say thank you for your leadership in my community and across the nation.

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